We have long heard about the baffling tipping culture in the United States. All across the country, you’re expected to leave a tip, and a generous one, regardless of the service. It’s a large portion of income for many employees, so they often rely on their customers' generosity. Unfortunately, when it doesn’t live up to their expectations, some people don’t think twice before acting out in retaliation.
A week ago, Hunter, a freelance artist and Twitch streamer based in New Mexico, opened up about a troubling experience she had with a GrubHub driver. The woman shared a video on TikTok calling out the company after the delivery person left her food in a place she could not reach with a wheelchair.
GrubHub, like many other meal delivery services, allows customers to leave a tip at the checkout, and Hunter revealed she left a 26% tip. However, that didn’t sit well with the driver. He decided to get payback and leave the order in the middle of her gravel driveway. The clip, where she explains the situation in great detail, quickly went viral and has amassed over 2.8M views at the time of writing.
We managed to get in touch with Hunter who was kind enough to have a little chat with us. She revealed that she was surprised to see her story blow up as much as it did. "I was encouraged by some online friends in the service dog community to share it, to maybe get some attention," she told Bored Panda. "Disabled folks' videos don’t tend to get a lot of traction, unfortunately. I was expecting a couple of shares, maybe a comment or two. Then it blew up and I’m still floored by the responses." Scroll down to find out the whole story and let us know what you think of the driver’s actions in the comments!
A woman in a wheelchair is calling out GrubHub after their driver left her order in an inaccessible place over her tip
Image credits: lizardqween
Image credits: lizardqween
Image credits: lizardqween
You can watch the full video, which got over 2.8M views, right over here
While picking up the food was supposed to be a smooth and easy process, for Hunter, who goes by the handle of @lizardqween on TikTok, it quickly turned into a deeply troubling situation. The driver who was handling the order seemed unhappy with her 26% tip, leaving it in the driveway where she was unable to get to the food, and adding a comment as seen in the screenshot, "Tip your driver’s better. Enjoy your food."
When asked about the driver and whether Hunter thinks he regrets his actions, she’s unsure how he feels or if he’s even seen the videos. "Part of me hopes he has so that he knows the consequences of his actions. Part of me hopes not, as he has my address. I’m still reeling from the response of everyone as the majority of the comments have been incredibly sweet and caring!"
The pandemic might have made us better tippers trying to help out struggling restaurants, cafes, and other places losing business. However, we’re well aware of the soaring prices as inflation hits a four-decade high, and the toll it takes on our bank accounts, so our tipping habits seem to be changing. "There has been a shift of gears," Mr. Cruz, a taco truck manager from Brooklyn, told The Wall Street Journal. "Now that the business is going back to quote-unquote normal, we have noticed that people are not tipping as well as before."
Moreover, as the workers are hesitant to return to service jobs that offer few benefits and low pay, employers are starting to see the value of tipping more than ever. "People in the service industry are earning minimum or less than minimum wage, tips are absolutely critical," Eric Plam, the founder of start-up Uptip, which aims to facilitate cashless tipping, told CNBC. "It’s a core part of their compensation."
But it is still perplexing to understand the GrubHub driver’s actions since the woman left quite a generous tip. According to GrubHub’s website, "If everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep." Hunter went 6% above the standard when ordering her meal. But even when she texted him about it and informed him she was unable to get her food, the driver did absolutely nothing to fix his behavior and made her wait an hour for her caretaker to arrive just so she could eat.
The woman approached GrubHub with the issue, but their solution was to offer her a 15% discount code
When she reached out the second time, the TikToker told GrubHub it was not about the money but, unfortunately, didn’t get much out of it
Image credits: lizardqween
Their final interaction ended with a "loose apology" and a $100 gift card she has no intention of using
Image credits: lizardqween
Hunter is in a wheelchair due to Leukemia, chemo, and a degenerative spinal disorder (Ankylosing Spondylitis), and called the whole ordeal "disability discrimination." When Hunter’s TikTok went viral, it led to her followers expressing anger over the driver’s behavior and asking follow-up questions on the platform.
"Some people were wanting to know why I need a wheelchair and if I need financial help making my home more accessible. I’m actually incredibly lucky and have an accessible house… just not an accessible driveway as it’s very long," she added. "It’s why I specify where to place my food, for drivers," she told us.
At the beginning of her first video, she said, "When people talk about disability discrimination, this is kind of what they’re referencing." But later on, she clarified in another clip that it wasn’t discrimination when it first happened since the employee had no way of knowing she used a wheelchair.
However, the company’s failure to resolve the incident led her to classify it as discrimination. "Once [the driver] found out and once I got this message from GrubHub, that’s when I believe it became discrimination," she explained in her follow-up clip. You see, Hunter reached out to GrubHub with her issue, yet they believed offering her a 15% discount on another order would solve the problem.
Then, after hearing from the commenters that GrubHub was more responsive on Twitter, she contacted them again. "Will I be informed of what actions are taken against the driver? I don’t really care about the money portion — I just don’t want this driver to be delivering to other Disabled people like this," her message reads. While she made clear her mission was to seek solutions for other people with disabilities who use GrubHub’s services, unfortunately, the company decided not to make a big deal out of this.
The final interaction, which happened after the video went viral, shows that the company claimed they were "conducting an internal investigation of the driver’s actions, and we will take all actions necessary, up to and including termination." They also gave her a $100 voucher. "I’m not personally going to use the gift card they gave me — I’m hoping I can donate it to someone in deep need, or buy some groceries for my local food pantry," she told Bored Panda.
Hunter is grateful that her situation was listened to, but believes that GrubHub's reaction seems somewhat hollow. "It took far too long for me to get a response from someone that actually showed some compassion. I don’t think the situation would’ve mattered much if the video hadn’t gone viral, which is unfortunate as I know I’m not the only Disabled person who relies on food delivery. There’s hundreds more in my shoes that aren’t being paid attention to and they matter just as much," she said.
"GrubHub needs to take the discrimination issues of their drivers and their customer service departments more seriously. As far as I can tell, there still isn’t a company-wide policy made known to their contracted drivers to be cognizant of the fact that their customers come from all walks of life," Hunter noted.
Later on, GrubHub tweeted a reply clarifying that they have "ended the driver’s contract"
Image credits: huesofhunter
Image credits: Grubhub
Here’s a final update from the woman about the whole situation
A spokesperson from GrubHub told Newsweek that they are currently investigating the incident: "GrubHub has a zero-tolerance policy for discriminatory behavior from our delivery partners," the statement read. "We are investigating this incident based on the information at hand and will take appropriate action." However, GrubHub later tweeted that after investigating this incident they "have ended the driver’s contract."
The creator of this viral clip hopes that her story will bring change and help make sure situations like these wouldn’t happen again in the future. "A lot of people aren’t aware of it but the Disabled are the largest marginalized group in the US, but we’re very much an unseen group. One out of every three individuals is Disabled and none is any less important than the next. I still can’t even marry my caregiver/partner as I’ll lose my benefits and she’ll lose her job — so we don’t even have marriage equality."
"Change needs to happen, and not just with GrubHub," Hunter said. "I suggest following Disabled people of all types on social media; there’s hundreds of us and you can learn so much from our lived experiences!"
And here’s how people reacted to this story online
